Coaching at Life

Sometimes men ask me about life coaching. (I"m serious—only men have asked me about this.) Sometimes they want that instead of counseling. It's such an iconic request—"I just need someone who knows what to do and will tell me what to do and then I'll do it."

But counseling isn't life coaching. It is, but also so much more. More comprehensive. More uncomfortable. More healing.

Here's the thing. If a coach has been helpful to you in the past with a sport, it makes sense that you would want to apply the same concept now to your career or even to your relationships. It really could be helpful if you're just wanting a tune-up on your performance. But currently, "life coaching" isn't regulated at all. Yes, you can be certified. But there's no overarching government on how this should be done, which means ANYBODY can claim to do it well, unchecked, with no accountability, nor held to any consistent standard. So you better be confident about your pick for coach.

Also if you're ready for surgery, rather than a bandaid, you're going to have to let someone in deeper.

Photo cred: Marek Piwnicki